Ward 87: Happy

Tuesday, 22 June 2010

Happy

The above is a cow. That's obvious to the world. I am quite partial to herds of cows although having tried to milk one some years ago, I found myself flat on my bottom having been kicked by it's hind leg. On the days,I am inordinately happy, I purchase Channel Island Milk. There is something about spoiling yourself after a stressful few days. For those who know me, I am one of those terribly irritating people who dislikes alcohol, coffee, tea and coke. I love milk. This is the reason my addictions do not centre around illicit substances or alcohol like most people in strife.

My addictions are milk and chocolate - then there is Druckers cakes, Haagen Daaz icecream and pancakes but we don't mention those! It is no secret that food makes everyone happy. I am no exception. When I jousted with the GMC, I took up cooking. I find cooking is a incredible way of doing something normal and besides it reminded me of Chemistry. In the beginning, the kitchen looked like a nuclear bomb had hit it but in time things got better. These days, I can manage to cook dinner without setting fire to my hair which is always promising. Food and cooking is all about indulgence and spoiling yourself and we all have to do this once in a while.

My friend loves to cook. On most weeks, he sends me picture messages by mobile. It is normally of the latest dinner he has cooked. If he had succeeded in his attempt to end his life, there would have been so many things I would have missed. I would have missed gossiping and mocking our stuck up colleagues, I would have missed his low fat cake pictures, his mischievous manner and hatred for all things authoritarian.

Today, I am so happy that my friend survived his overdose. I was just so relieved that he made it out of the hospital and back home. Anyway, there was something about the sun, the roses and the colours. Everything was bright and vibrant. I love days like this and I am ecstatic that he decided to live. Of course, I was on the phone to him telling him off repeatedly.

The horrible feeling of devastation and helplessness has finally disappeared from me after hours of anxiety over whether he would live or die. After the loss of Beau Eckland, I would have been totally devastated if another one of my friends disappeared. My friend and I have been through a lot together. I can't describe the various antics at the GMC but we did some good team working in pulling the carpet from under them all. Things just wouldn't be the same without his antics. There is something about friends you have known for years - you get used to them and you can never imagine a time without them.

We still have to go to the GMC dressed in burkas so we aren't recognised! I thought of the names Osamina Fartini and Fatima Patel :). There are so many things left to do and so much fun to be had. At least he promised me he would never make anymore attempts like this ever again and that he would live life to the full - as it is meant to be lived. I have promised that I shall not maliciously place his profile on Shaadi.com so that he can find a sad female GP advertising in the back columns of the BMJ asking for the missionary position due to various egg timers.

In the meantime, I am now officially drinking Channel Island milk. Absolute Bliss! And yes, my friend and I are officially back to our usual antics.The GMC may wish to watch out for two "women" in Burkas in the next 80 years.

2 comments:

Jobbing Doctor said...: I loved this post, Rita.; 22 June 2010 at 22:33
Anonymous said...: Thanks JD.

Hope all is well with you

R; 23 June 2010 at 05:40

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About The Author

There is a lot of things most people can say about me but in reality I am NHS Whistleblower. In 1998, I followed the guidance set out in Good Medical Practice[GMC] and raised concerns about substandard care on Ward 87 North Staffordshire NHS Trust. I also raised concerns about the large number of Midlands Hospitals covered by West Midlands NHS Executive in 1999. Following the recordings of the HSMR scores, only Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust spiked their figures. This was due to the inordinately high death rates. These deaths could have been prevented had the government acted in 1999. There are many other hospitals with equally high death rates but 1000s have not raised the HSMR scores. The Mid Staffordshire Inquiry shows poor standards that are similar to many hospitals in the Midlands [particularly Distinct General Hospitals]. They were also the identical to the concerns raised by me in 1999, many years before.

In 2010 the CQC finally admitted that North Staffordshire had "significantly high mortality" in the years I raised concerns.

This blog follows my adventures as a whistleblower. It was written between 2008-2010. It seeks to present what the media have never done. I also aim to discuss a number of medical issues important in the NHS today. A short account of my experiences is presented here.

Essentially, I raised concerns in 1998, locally then to all the authorities, the GMC, Department of Health and Trust attempted to say there was no substance to my concerns. In 2005, I discovered that all authorities had concealed the 1998 and 2001 internal reports that verified my concerns. This is a brief step by step summary of the events related to Ward 87.

Between 2000-2002, the General Medical Council conducted a "discreet inquiry" into my Fitness to Practice. I was never told of this investigation until I discovered quite by accident following a subject access request under the Data Protection Act 1998. The GMC were subjected to litigation by me due to the illegal investigation and repeated leaks of prejudicial information to potential employers. They were beaten in court following the first litigation of its kind. The GMC settled the case in favour of me. During litigation, the GMC subjected me quite severe harassment by revolving door vexatious complaints - 2 in total. I was cleared of all of them. I was never subjected to any Fitness to Practise hearings. All complaints were thrown out at case examiner's stage despite the GMC's malevolent intentions.

The GMC subsequently erased me from the Register for non payment of subscription fees. It should be emphasized that I was never sanctioned or struck off has speculated by some bloggers. In total, I have been subjected to 4 years of complaints that had no relation to my clinical work. This has had catastrophic consequences to my work as a doctor and eventually caused the assassination of my references in 2007.

This led to the test case R v General Medical Council Ex Parte Pal with the intention of defining the definition of potential misconduct and preventing vexatious complaints against doctors. The complaints were made by Penny Mellor and her associate Fiona Wollard [ niece of Professor Sir Charles George].

While permission was granted by a judge with Employment Law experience, the final hearing was lost courtesy of Justice Sir Andrew Collins who made various statements. One was that the GMC was free to rule differently on two separate cases with exactly the same facts and the other was to widen the analysis of misconduct to include conduct outside the profession. Justice Sir Andrew Collins has sat on numerous cases related to the GMC. He has often failed to declare that his brother Dr Mark Collins was once prosecuted by the GMC for alliances in Clapham Common. Details of this can be read here.

The two diametrically opposite analysis of misconduct was also discovered following the GMC's submission to R v General Medical Council Ex Parte Remedy UK. Essentially, one analysis appears to be used for some foreign doctors and a different more lenient definition is used for establishment doctors such as Liam Donaldson. The GMC were essentially caught red handed touting two different analysis of misconduct in two cases. This discrepancy is currently being investigated by both the CHRE and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

The defenses to all these cases have taken up 52 files. By comparison, the GMC refused to investigate the doctors on Ward 87 despite the fact that their conduct was directly related to clinical work. They continue to work in various positions in the UK. No one was held accountable despite 2 reports verifying my concerns. Moreover, the Health Commission refused to conduct a broader data study in relation to the Ward 87. The GMC and Ombudsman refused to inform the patients on the Ward of the 1998 and 2001 Reports. The Sentinel newspapers refused to feature a legitimate advert.

In 2009, after discussion with Dr Phil Hammond, he wrote an excellent piece in Private Eye. While the media have provided little or no support for these issues, I am indebted to my fellow bloggers - Dr Rant, The Jobbing Doctor, Dr John Crippen and Witchdoctor. This blog exists to protect other doctors who I hope will never tread the path of whistleblowing. It is a path paved with injustice. It also serves to show the public that they cannot legitimately expect doctors to raise concerns in such a dangerous terrain. This indeed places patient safety in great jeopardy.

This blog ended in February 2010 as it was unlikely that I would ever return to medicine. I have also decided to end this particular saga here. I hope this blog will educate, entertain and remind the public that whistleblowing is a dangerous escapade and no junior doctor has treaded the same path as I have for a reason. The terrain is unsafe and always has been. I would say that I have been relatively unsupported in my journey through whistleblowing but singlehandedly I have been able to undercover evidence and establish some very important issues regarding the dangers of whistleblowing. I have ceased to respond to the media but I am always very happy to discuss matters with the public.

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Tuesday, 22 June 2010

Happy

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